Dear Committee Co-Chairs and Members of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association:

As South Asian faculty and specialists on the region, we are writing to request you to withdraw your invitation to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to speak at the AAHOA Convention in Ft. Lauderdale, FL on March 24-26, 2005.
In Gujarat, between February 28-March 02, 2002, under Narendra Modi's leadership, more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed, aided and abetted by the state. In the aftermath, 200,000 people have been rendered homeless and internally displaced. Today, three years after the event, the victims of the violence still await justice and reparations. Mr. Modi not only failed to take preventative measures against those who were planning the violence with his knowledge, but undertook a series of actions which either tacitly or explicitly condoned the brutal violence, which included torture of children and mass rapes of women.
Numerous inquiries and commissions, including the Indian National Human Rights Commission, have condemned the role of the Government of Gujarat headed by Mr. Modi which provided leadership and material support in the politically motivated attacks on minorities in Gujarat in 2002. The European Union, and every major Indian and international human rights organization: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the Commonwealth Initiative for Human Rights, Citizen's Initiative, People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), and the People's Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), have condemned the Gujarat genocide, and pointed to the complicity of the Government of Gujarat in the violence. The report of the Justice U.C. Banerjee Commission has concluded that the fire in coach S-6 of the Sabarmati Express which resulted in the deaths of 59 people was an accident, and not a terrorist attack on Hindu pilgrims as the State Government of Gujarat claimed in its attempt to justify the violence.

The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the United States Department of State released a report on International Religious Freedom in 2002, pointing to the culpability of the Government of Gujarat in the violence, its violations of human rights and religious freedoms, and the targeting of other minority groups, such as Christians, following the event.

As you know, there has also been bi-partisan support in the United States for human rights in Gujarat. Former President Clinton condemned the events in Gujarat, and Congressman Pitts (R-PA) addressed the United States House of Representatives on June 18, 2002, condemning the premeditated brutality in Gujarat and acknowledging insufficient action on the part of the United States. Mr. Joseph R. Pitts also conveyed that Hindu extremist groups receive some of their funds from charities in the United States and the United Kingdom. Research undertaken by two independent groups, the Campaign To Stop Funding Hate and South Asia Watch Ltd, have demonstrated as well that Hindu nationalist organizations supporting Mr. Modi in Gujarat have corresponding organizations in the United States, that undertake fundraising to sustain the work of Hindu fundamentalism in India. Mr. Modi is on such a fundraising trip to the United States now.

Under Mr. Modi's leadership, more than 2,000 of 4,000 cases filed by the victims of the violence were never investigated or dismissed, leading the Supreme Court of India to rebuke both the Gujarat judiciary and the Government of Gujarat for its handling of the cases, and transferring several cases out of the state for trial. Three years later, the Government of Gujarat continues to harass and discriminate against its Christian and Muslim minority populations, as well as other marginalized groups with new policies and skewed application of existing laws. For these reasons, Mr. Modi is in violation of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, as well as other international laws and should be denied a visa to enter the United States.
By "honoring" such a person at the AAHOA Meetings, you are suggesting Narendra Modi is a model to be emulated, and are thereby not only denigrating the victims of the Gujarat pogroms, but our common humanity. Your decision is not only morally incomprehensible but economically unwise. Many of us will not be inclined to patronize AAHOA member hotels which endorse the punitive and discriminatory policies of Narendra Modi's government.
As of this writing, the state Government of Gujarat continues to harrass and discriminate against both its Christian and Muslim minority populations with new policies and skewed application of existing laws. For these reasons Mr. Modi is in violation of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, among other international laws, and the Broward County Convention Center may be well within its rights to abrogate its agreement with the AAHOA.

The AAHOA's invitation to Narendra Modi has already tarnished the good name and reputable image of your organization. We strongly urge you to rescind the invitation to Mr. Modi and to issue a public statement to this effect to repair the damage done to the reputation of the AAHOA.

Thank you for your consideration. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like further information.